


Then and Now

by AirDoodles



Category: BLACKPINK (Band), GOT7
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Jealousy, Romance, Short
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-20
Updated: 2017-10-25
Packaged: 2018-12-04 13:21:17
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,593
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11556048
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AirDoodles/pseuds/AirDoodles
Summary: When Jinyoung finally gets the chance to MC with ideal girl Bomi, the moment forces him to consider his growing feelings for Jisoo.





	1. Chapter 1

Jinyoung wishes he could blame the heat, but the AC is blasting and everybody else in the room has goosebumps from the cold.

 

Still, his palms are sweating. Every couple of seconds he has to wipe them against his jeans to keep dry. The shirt sticking to his back is a different story altogether though. He’s sitting on a chair that is catty-corner to a couch in the Inkigayo waiting room. And seated on the couch is none of than APink’s Bomi.

 

Also known as the girl of his dreams.

 

She looks elegant and pretty in an off-shoulder pale pink dress with ruffles on the skirt. Her hair is bobbed and smooth, the edges stop just above her slender shoulders. The exposed skin is lightly freckled, which Jinyoung thinks is cute. She’s so close to him that if he moved his knee a little bit, it might skim her leg, so he sits as still and tense as a captured soldier in the enemy’s interrogation room.

 

What’s worse is that Bomi hasn’t stopped smiling since she came in. When she smiles, her eyes scrunch up into half moons lined by soft, dark lashes, and the corners of her mouth pull up and expose her dainty teeth. She looks so heartbreakingly beautiful that Jinyoung can’t help but feel embarrassed just looking at her.

 

“Sorry, I’m a little nervous,” Bomi says diplomatically. “I’ve done this before, but it’s been a while. I might miss a cue or two.”

 

“Oh… just.. It’s okay…,” Jinyoung says, stammering out a half-formed reply. He smiles and laughs nervously. As tense and still as he is, on the inside, it feels as if his body is rushing in every direction at once. Bomi stares at him expectantly, but seeing that he doesn’t seem to have anything else to say, she just laughs. 

 

 _Say something_ , idiot, he thinks to himself. His long-time crush is just an arm’s reach away and he can’t manage to say two words to her. Instead, he sits there, sweating through his clothes. His heart is beating so fast, he feels like it’s trying to run away from him.

 

Boy starts tapping a foot, and Jinyoung inwardly panics. Oh god, he thinks, she’s bored. _I should say something to her_.

 

“Usually, Jisoo and Doyoung would… be here by now,” Jinyoung says. Bomi looks at him and smiles again.

 

“Oh, right,” she says, looking up from her script. “I’m a little disappointed I won’t get to meet Doyoung today. NCT’s latest comeback looks impressive. I guess it just means I’ll have to come back.”

 

“Oh… yeah, yes… I guess so,” Jinyoung says. He rubs his palms against his jeans, wondering where on God’s green earth Jisoo could be. She’s the more playful, outgoing one in the Inkigayo bunch. If she were here, she’d know what to do to keep Bomi entertained and maybe he wouldn’t be sitting here looking like a damned fool in front of his longtime crush. 

 

Almost as if his thoughts he summoned her, the door on the far side of the room opens, and Jisoo strolls in. He doesn’t know why he does it, but Jinyoung jumps to his feet the minute he lays eyes on her. The movement startles Bomi. She follows his gaze to the door and sees Jisoo walking in.

 

Jisoo has already been to the costume department, so she’s sporting a pink plaid dress over a white top. It’s the same shade of pink as Bomi’s dress and the tropical details on Jinyoung’s shirt, but it has more of a rustic feel. She still has purple hair like a nebula.

 

“Hey! Sorry I’m late!” Jisoo says, clutching her script and bowing in apology. She greets Bomi politely and exchanges a few words. Then, she looks at Jinyoung with the same bright smile she wears every week. All of a sudden, Jinyoung’s nerves are starting to subside, and his heartbeat calms down. He starts feeling the cool air blowing on his skin again. He’s glad Jisoo is here to chase away the tension in the room.

 

“So, have you two gotten far with today’s script?” Jisoo asks, taking a seat next to Bomi. The Apink member shakes her head.

 

“We were waiting for you to get here so we could all do it together,” Bomi says and then looks at Jinyoung. “In the meantime, we’ve just been getting to know each other.”

 

Jisoo looks between Bomi and Jinyoung. “Great!” Jisoo says. “Do you two know each other?” She flips through her script while she waits for an answer.

 

“We’ve had a few run-ins at waiting rooms,” Jinyoung answers, relieved that he’s finally able to form a cohesive sentence for once since Bomi got here. “But this is the first time we’ve been MC’s together.”

 

Bomi smiles at him, and Jinyoung’s cheeks flush, a detail that doesn’t escape Jisoo’s notice. She looks between the Apink member and the GOT7 member with a knowing look in her eye. 

 

“Should we go over our lines and cues, together?” Jisoo suggests, then she looks at Jinyoung. “I guess since you’re the only man today, you get to be the main character.”

 

Jinyoung laughs. “I’m sorry I stole your limelight,” he replies. “You’ll get it back next week, maybe.”

 

“Not if I decide to steal it from you later today,” Jisoo says.

 

“Oh, I don’t know about that,” Jinyoung says, smirking.

 

Bomi flips the script open to her first line, taking notice of the easy way Jisoo and Jinyoung banter and counter each other’s quick remarks, bouncing off the other’s energy like true professional MC’s. The three of them go over their lines once and then mark and re-rehearse the parts that they stumble on. Once they are comfortable with everything, they go over it one more time just to be completely sure.

 

Jisoo uses a highlighter to mark up the lines in her script. She misses Doyoung, for sure. The boy has a sunny demeanor that mixed nicely between Jisoo’s high energy and Jinyoung’s more tame nature. But she likes having Bomi around, too. It’s been a while since she has worked with another woman on Inkigayo. She looks up at Bomi and thinks that she ought to start a friendly conversation with the Apink member. But when Jisoo looks up, she sees Jinyoung, instead.

 

He, too, has finished marking up his script, and Jisoo catches him gazing at Bomi as she rereads her lines. There’s a vulnerable look on Jinyoung’s face as he stares at the older girl, as if he’s afraid she may disappear. His eyes are so soft that Jisoo’s breath catches when she looks at them. And then she feels an odd, dull pain in her chest as she realizes that Jinyoung must have feelings for Bomi.

 

Oh, she thinks. How… sweet.

 

When his head begins to turn, Jisoo hurriedly looks back down at her script and tries to look busy. She suddenly feels very embarrassed to have caught Jinyoung looking so vulnerable. She has known him for some time now, enough to know that he is an intensely private person despite living much of his life in the public sphere. She wouldn’t like him prying into his feelings. 

 

Hers, however, feel very muddled at the moment. If he was Doyoung and Jisoo found out about his feelings for a guest MC, she would have teased him like an older sister. Her better instincts tell her she should just laugh and joke with Jinyoung, too. After all, why should she care who Jinyoung likes and doesn’t like? But… still… she can’t bring herself to… smile.

 

Jisoo stands up. Her action startles both her coworkers, as they look at and stare at her.

 

“Everything alright?” Jinyoung asks. Jisoo nods.

 

“I’m just gonna grab a drink from the vending machine in the hall,” she says. Then she squeezes past Bomi and Jinyoung and retreats into the hallway. Bomi and Jinyoung watch her as she exits the room, but Jinyoung watches her retreating form with a bigger measure of concern. Over the months, he’s become familiar with Jisoo’s voices: the bright, cheerful voice she uses when she’s filming; the sugary, high-pitched voice she uses when she wants something from her manager; the deeper, husky voice she uses for every day; but her voice sounded different that time. It worries him.

 

He also becomes aware that by leaving to get a drink, Jisoo has once again left him alone with Bomi. Suddenly, the pressure to entertain her and be a good host to her is back, and it starts to crush him again. Before it can get any worse, he stands up.

 

“Sorry, just give me a minute,” he says, bowing to Bomi before excusing himself out of the room. Once in the hallway, he starts looking for Jisoo. To his surprise, he actually does find her by the vending machine. 

 

Jinyoung walks up to her and Jisoo looks surprised. 

 

“Do you want a drink, too?” she says. “I highly recommend Trevi sparkling water.”

 

Jinyoung ignores her little joke. “Is everything okay?” he asks. 

 

Jisoo isn’t sure how to answer since she herself isn’t exactly sure how she feels. She surprised herself, in fact, when she stood up and walked out. She isn’t sure what possessed her to do that and make a scene. Maybe it’s because as much as she’ll deny it to anyone, she does like Jinyoung, and she can’t bear to be in the same room as Jinyoung as he turns a loving gaze on another girl. Or maybe it’s because she’s his friend, and friends leave their friends in rooms with the girl they like in a show of solidarity. Jisoo decides to believe the latter.

 

“I’m okay,” she says. “But what are you doing out here?”

 

“Checking on you,” he says. Jisoo twists open a bottle of water and widens her eyes at Jinyoung. She can play the part of the matchmaking friend. It’s easier, anyway, than playing the part of the girl with an embarrassing crush.

 

“Okay, but what are you doing _here_?” she asks. “Bomi is all alone in there! Don’t you want to keep her company?”

 

“What?” Jinyoung asks. How did she even know that? Was he really that transparent? Jisoo rolls her eyes at him.

 

“You really _are_ that transparent, Jinyoung,” she says, as if reading his mind. “I left the room to give you a little privacy, some alone time with her. You like her, right?”

 

“I… I…,” Jinyoung stammers. Unbelievable. Jisoo nags him again and then grabs him by the sleeve. She pushes him back toward the door and tells him to be more confident. To tell Bomi how he feels and just be nice to her and enjoy her presence. 

 

“And then, after the recording,” Jisoo says, whispering. “Ask her out!”

 

Jinyoung narrows his eyes at her. She knew as damn well as he did that dating among idols wasn’t as simple as “asking someone out.” 

 

He twists the knob and goes back into the room while Jisoo once again makes herself scarce. Bomi still sits on the couch, and she smiles when Jinyoung rejoins her. They make small talk again, but Jinyoung is still thinking of the odd interaction he just had with Jisoo in the hallway.

 

He had gone to check on her because he was worried. In the time he and Jisoo had spent together as MC’s, their relationship progressed from strangers to coworkers and acquaintances to friends, and oftentimes, their relationship skirts around the borders of flirtation. He had thought—between the lingering looks and all the “accidental” touches—that maybe Jisoo felt something for him. But now here she is, pushing him toward another girl entirely. Had he been wrong?

 


	2. Chapter 2

The rest of the time Jinyoung is alone with Bomi isn’t long. They’ve both gone over the script enough times to be able to say their lines once prompted, with a fair bit of improvisation to spice things up. Jinyoung wishes he could say the same about his conversation skills with Bomi.

 

When he’s around her, he gets caught up in his thoughts. He has to play his words over and over again in his head to make sure they’re adequate before he can brave saying them to her. Too many times, this results in an awkward silence. He’s afraid he’s putting her off.

 

“So, how do you like your Inkigayo gig?” Bomi asks, raising her brows inquisitively. It’s a small movement, but Jinyoung finds it adorable and he gets tongue-tied again. Bomi laughs at his attempt, and he laughs along, nervously. Out of nowhere, she puts a friendly hand on his arm. He feels like he might combust at this very moment.

 

“Hey,” she says in a friendly tone. “Stop being so nervous! You’re a regular MC on this show, if _you’re_ nervous, then there’s no hope for me, the guest!”

 

“Sorry,” Jinyoung says. “It’s not usually like this. I guess I’ve been absent too many times, I’m starting to lose my touch.”

 

“You’re probably used to doing things a certain way,” Bomi says. “I’m sure you, Jisoo, and Doyoung have fallen in some kind of routine, developed great chemistry.”

 

Jinyoung smiled. “We have,” he says. It’s the first thing he can say confidently in front of her. This doesn’t escape Bomi’s notice, and she’s intrigued. She sits up on the couch and latches onto the first topic Jinyoung actually seems comfortable discussing with her.

 

“So, tell me,” she says cheerfully. “Between the three of you, who’s the best MC? I won’t tell them your answer, I promise!”

 

Jinyoung sits up. “The best MC?” he says. “Wow. Okay. Umm, let’s see… personally, I feel like we each have our strengths and weaknesses. Me, I look a typical MC, I’m in charge of being the reliable anchor, keeping things going smoothly, sticking to the script. Doyoung’s a funny kid, he’s good at improvising gags and doing cute things. Jisoo is…”

 

He pauses for a second. Bomi leans in.

 

“Sorry, what?” she says. Jinyoung thinks about Jisoo, probably still lingering alone in the hallway, and he feels terrible. But he thinks about what she said to him, how she told him—with a smile on her face—to go back into the room and talk to Bomi. Casual. Cheerful, even.

 

“Jisoo’s the mood maker,” Jinyoung says, looking up at Bomi. “When she walks into a room, she lights it up. She knows everyone by name, and she greets them all. When she talks to you, you know she’s really talking to you and not just at you. She comes here every Sunday and makes us all feel like a family.”

 

Jinyoung is still staring at Bomi, but she has a feeling that he isn’t really seeing her.

 

“She’s a strong believer in people,” Jinyoung says. “She has this amazing aura, she just draws you in, makes you feel special. Safe. Important.”

 

Bomi wonders if he can hear himself, the way he talks about Jisoo. He suddenly laughs to himself.

 

“Actually, she can also get a little out of hand,” he says. “She has a lot of energy, it can take a while for us to get down to business and start going over scripts if she starts talking. She can be naive at times. And whatever you do, do _not_ get her started on manga. Or dogs. Or food. Not unless you want her to talk for 3 hours straight without breathing.”

 

He laughs again. His eyes scrunch up when he laughs genuinely.

 

“Sometimes, though,” he says, his voice slowing down. “Sometimes, she walks in and she isn’t so cheerful and bright. I mean, she’s always polite, of course, and she still says hello to everyone, and she still does her job. But sometimes you can see that she’s not always happy. But it’s alright, I don’t expect her to be happy all the time.”

 

Jinyoung swallows and he looks down at his hands. “I saw her look sad once,” he says. “In the costume department after the recording. She had already changed out and went to return the clothes. She was alone in there, or she thought she was. She was standing by the mirror, but she was looking down. She isn’t the type to show her emotions to people, especially not in public, so she hides when she does. But I saw her. I passed by the room and saw her reflection.”

 

He furrows his brows, calling back the memory. He had wanted to go inside and talk to her then, but he knew that if he did, she’d just put on another smile and try to act strong in front of him. That wasn’t what he wanted. He wanted her to know that she could have these moments alone to be sad if she wanted. He had stood against the wall, not quite in the doorway, looking at her crestfallen face in the mirror and stopping himself from running in there.

 

It was… strange. To see her frowning instead of smiling. It was the first time he had ever seen this iridescent, fearless, dazzling, Amazonian warrior-princess of a girl look vulnerable, human. She was beautiful.

 

And then she looked up and saw him looking at her in the mirror. Their eyes met. Jinyoung expected her to turn around and chase him away or call him a pervert for spying on her or toss her sadness away and pretend that she was just practicing sad faces in the mirror.

 

But she didn’t. She didn’t say a word or move or anything, she only stood there and let him see her. Suddenly, Jinyoung had felt… honored? Privileged? Grateful? All of those things. Honored, privileged, grateful that she was letting him see a side of her that she never showed to anyone else. Even if it was just a peek through a half-open doorway and a reflection in a mirror. She had let him into her world a little bit.

 

That was why it hurt so much that she had put on that smile in the hallway. Pretended, again, that she was okay even though he knows that she’s hiding something hurtful. She was pushing him out again, closing the door in his face.

 

Jinyoung doesn’t even realize that he’s fallen silent. Only this time, it isn’t awkward. Bomi smiles fondly at him, touched by the sincerity of his words. When he realizes that he’s said too much, his cheeks color. He wishes he could disappear again. He’s said way too much in front of Bomi, thinks that she doesn’t need hear or know.

 

“Anyway,” he says, laughing nervously. “The directors will be giving us our cue soon. Should we start heading over to the stage?”

 

 

 

 

 

During filming, Jinyoung can feel him gravitating toward Jisoo, and he has to remind himself to stay centered between the two girls. He doesn’t want to make Bomi feel awkward. But he doesn’t want Jisoo to feel he’s neglecting her, either. He watches himself, tries to make sure that he balances out the amount of interaction he has with both his co-MC’s.

 

Even though he still wishes Jisoo hadn’t left him in the room with Bomi, it did help him a bit. Once on stage, he’s no longer intimidated by her beauty or caught off guard by the sweetness of her smile. He thinks that their conversation has brought them somewhat closer, though he’s embarrassed at having revealed so much of his thoughts.

 

Jisoo, however, is unreadable. Through filming, she acts like her normal self. She’s using her bright, cheerful, Inkigayo voice, and she’s sticking to the script, making it impossible for Jinyoung to know exactly what she’s thinking. It confuses him. He could have sworn he’d heard something wrong in her voice when she excused herself. But she’s hiding again. Hiding behind her Inkigayo voice and the illusion of being fine.

 

Does he care because there _is_ something in the lingering looks and the accidental touches? Or is it because… he’s a friend, and friends care about these things. He tries to tell himself that it’s the latter.

 

In a few hours, the episode is over. Jinyoung smiles, but on the inside, he feels let down. He looks over at her several times during filming, but she doesn’t meet his eyes even once. She doesn’t let him see her this time.

 

 

 

 

 

When filming is over, Jinyoung changes into his normal clothes and lets his coordinator wipe the makeup from his face. Across the room, Bomi has already changed into her clothing as well and her manager is reminding her of another schedule she has later in the week. Jinyoung straightens in his chair as he regards Bomi again.

 

A few years ago, he said in an interview that he thought she looked pretty when she smiled. She looked pure and cute and happy and friendly, and Jinyoung was reduced to a babbling mush overtime he encountered her in a dressing room. As always, he feels his heart speeding up again at the sight of her.

 

But this time, he thinks he’s ridiculous. He’s had enough of being a silly boy with a huge, embarrassing crush. Time to get this over with.

 

When her manager walks off to get the car ready, Bomi starts putting her things into her purse. Jinyoung takes this as his cue to approach her. When she sees him coming, she smiles just like she’s been smiling all day.

 

“How’d I do?” Bomi asks. Jinyoung nods.

 

“You almost sounded like an MC,” he says and she laughs.

 

“Well, I couldn’t have done it without yours and Jisoo’s support,” Bomi says. “I was going to tell her thank you, but she’s disappeared again. Can you let her know I tried looking for her? I have to get going.”

 

“Yeah, sure,” Jinyoung says. She’s about to turn and head for the exit, and Jinyoung speaks up before she can go. “Bomi!” he says, a little too loud. She’s startled.

 

 _Just ask her out_.

 

“Do you…” he begins, heart pounding. Bomi looks at him expectantly. “I know you said you’re a hurry tonight, but… if you aren’t doing anything tomorrow evening… would you like to get dinner… with me?”

 

She looks confused. Jinyoung gets worried. He’s asked girls out before, but not idols, and not Bomi from Apink. What if she said no? What was the even like? He was about to find out. Bomi’s smile starts to fade, and she tucks a hair behind her ear.

 

“Jinyoung,” she says gently. “I… I’m _incredibly_ flattered.”

 

Jinyoung’s heart sinks a little. That’s what girls always say right before they say no. He lets out a slow breath, needs a minute to let the rejection waft over him.

 

“I used to be your ideal girl, right?” Bomi says. Jinyoung looks at her, horrified. He opens his mouth but he just stutters.

 

“I… ,” he says and his throat feels like it’s going dry. He supposes there’s no point in denying it at this point. “How did you know?”

 

She laughs a little. “I saw your interview,” she says. “You said ‘Bomi looks pretty when she smiles. How can I say hello without feeling embarrassed in the waiting room?’ I thought it was sweet.”

 

Jinyoung face palms and then rubs the back of his neck. He can’t believe Bomi saw that.

 

“I did say that, I remember,” Jinyoung says, embarrassed again. When he looks at her, she still has a smile on her face. Oddly, now that he knows that she knows, the pressure to impress her is suddenly gone.

 

“You do look pretty when you smile,” Jinyoung says. He takes a deep breath once more. “Bomi, I really like you.”

 

There. He’s said it now. He waits for something to happen, waits for himself to feel something. In moments like these, the confessor usually feels something, right? He sees it happen in dramas and in books all the time when the protagonist makes a groundbreaking confession. Yet there’s only quiet. Bomi looks expectant.

 

“But?” she says. Jinyoung is confused.

 

“What?”

 

“It sounded like you were going to say ‘but,’” she says. Jinyoung blinks.

 

“I… wasn’t.”

 

Bomi’s expression looks somewhat disappointed.

 

“You really like me, but…” she says. “You like Jisoo _more_ now, right?”

 

Jinyoung’s face pales. “What? No.”

 

“No?”

 

“No, you misunderstand, Jisoo is… she’s… we just…”

 

Bomi gives him a skeptical look, raised one eyebrow at him as if daring him to tell her that it wasn’t true. It wasn’t true. He says it to himself again and again. It’s not true. There’s nothing. He feels… nothing. It’s… not… true… right?

 

He meets Bomi’s eyes, and she is smirking.

 

“How did you know?” Jinyoung asks.

 

Bomi laughs.

 

“I think the first giveaway was the look on your face when she walked into the room,” Bomi said. “You had this look of pure admiration and relief, like your own personal angel just walked through the door.”

 

He had?

 

“Also, the second time we were left alone in that room,” Bomi says. “I don’t think I’ve ever heard anyone talk about anything the way you talk about Jisoo. You’re voice changes. I mean, you have your normal voice when you’re talking to me, and you’ve got your Inkigayo voice, but when you’re talking about her, you sound different. You sound… comfortable.”

 

Jinyoung, trying to maintain some semblance of dignity, shrugs. “I’m comfortable around her,” he says simply. “If that’s what you mean.”

 

“That probably feels much better than being embarrassed, right?” Bomi says. Jinyoung looks up and catches her gaze. Bomi smiles.

 

“You should ask her out,” Bomi says. “I think she likes you, too.”


	3. Chapter 3

Once again, the AC is blasting in the room, yet Jinyoung can’t help but feel stuffed and hot. He looks enviously over at Doyoung, who is sitting on an upholstered chair looking comfortable and fresh in a Pyeongchang Olympics t-shirt and a beret that a coordinator gave him to wear. Jisoo is sitting on the couch opposite the one Jinyoung has occupied. She’s wearing a Pyeongchang t-shirt, too. It is tucked into a denim skirt and her purple hair is straight and loose.

 

She hasn’t taken her eyes off her script since they walked into the room. She hasn’t said a word, either. Not since last week, at least not to him.

 

Doyoung looks up from his bundle of papers and is about to suggest that they begin running through their parts when he notices both _hung_ and _noona_ staring intensely down at their scripts. Strange, he thinks. They seem rather quiet today. Maybe it’s not so unusual for Jinyoung, as he is the quieter one in their trio, but something about his aura seems off. As for Jisoo, normally, by now, she would have started two or three conversations about a recent environmental disaster or about someone she met in the hallway. But up to now, she has been silent.

 

Doyoung suddenly tunes himself into the atmosphere and senses tension. Something has shifted between these two in the last week or so, and it is making them awkward.

 

He isn’t an idiot. Of course Doyoung has noticed that his two co-MC’s have gotten closer over the months they’ve spent working together. Carefree Jisoo _noona_ is the type to lavish the object of her affection with her smiles and cleverness, but in such a way that blurs the line between friendship and flirtation. Jinyoung _hyung_ is more careful; one has to be paying close attention to notice the subtle ways that his attitude toward Jisoo is different from the way he is with everyone else.

 

If this were like any other week, by now, Doyoung would be knee-deep in their secret glances and shy smiles and small talk. Today, however, there is just silence.

 

He stands up. “I’m going to use the toilet,” Doyoung said in an unnaturally upbeat way. He steps away from the seating area before either of them can protest and quickly runs out the door.

 

Alone at last, Jinyoung looks over at Jisoo and inwardly panics. Without another thought, he too excuses himself to the toilet. Jinyoung clenches his fist as her heads out the door, but to his surprise he is intercepted by Doyoung. The NCT member is, interestingly, _not_ in the toilets at all, but is leaning against the wall in the hallway, scrolling through his phone.

 

“Doyoung?” Jinyoung says.

 

The younger MC looks up with eyes as wide as a doe’s and twice as panicked.

 

“What are you doing?” Doyoung whispers, walking toward him.

 

“I thought you were going to the bathroom?” Jinyoung said.

 

Doyoung just stares at him for a minute and then clicks his tongue. He takes Jinyoung by the arm and leads him back to the waiting room door.

 

“What are you doing?” Jinyoung asks.

 

“Why are you two being so awkward?” Doyoung asks with a whisper. The color drains from Jinyoung’s face. Doyoung gives him a knowing look.

 

“Yes, _hyung_ ,” Doyoung says. “You really are that transparent. Something happened between you two, and it’s making things awkward. So I suggest you go back in there and fix things with _noona_ before we go on camera.”

 

Doyoung gives Jinyoung one last look before waltzing off to find a restroom or a friend to run into in the hallway, leaving Jinyoung to once again ask himself what just happened. When he turns the knob and goes back into the room, Jisoo doesn’t turn around to greet him. He quietly takes his place on the sofa opposite Jisoo.

 

This is even worse, he thinks, than the time he was left alone with Bomi. At least, with Bomi, he knew that it was just one week of awkwardness. But Jisoo is a regular MC on Inkigayo. If he cannot patch things up in the next twenty minutes or so, he’s afraid that things will be this way between them from now on. He swallows a hard lump in his throat and fidgets with his hands.

 

After what feels like eternity and a half, Jisoo finally puts down her script and talks.

 

“So,” she says when the silence becomes too much for her, too. “Did you ask Bomi out?”

 

 _Oh god_ , Jinyoung thinks. This again.

 

“I did, actually,” he answers. He thinks again of that moment, back in this very waiting room one week ago. Jisoo doesn’t react to his answer the way he thinks she would. In fact, it feels as though she is trying hard not to react at all. He manages to catch her bite her bottom lip.

 

“And?” she asks.

 

Jinyoung sighs. “She turned me down.”

 

Only then does Jisoo look up and meet his eyes. There’s a look of disbelief plastered on her face.

 

“What?” she says. “Why?”

 

He shrugs. “I guess… she wasn’t into me.”

 

JIsoo gives him a piteous look, as if he were a stray puppy.

 

“Oh,” she says gently. “I guess it can’t be helped.”

 

Jinyoung doesn’t know what to say in reply.

 

“Still,” Jisoo says after another beat of silence. “I’m sorry. I saw that interview you did years ago. You said she was your ideal type. You must have been really excited.”

 

If she focuses, she can still recall the look on his face when she caught him looking at Bomi. Jinyoung looks at her and can guess what she is thinking about. A reply manages to fall out of him haphazardly.

 

“Jisoo,” he says tentatively. “You do know that… when interviewers ask ideal type questions that… our answers don’t really mean anything, right?”

 

She gives him a confused look.

 

“I… what?” Jisoo says.

 

Jinyoung begins speaking before he really even has time to flesh out what he is trying to say.

 

“It’s actually more like a form of fan service than an actual answer,” he leans forward on the sofa and explains this with a shaky voice. He doesn’t know why he’s suddenly switched to _sunbae_ mode and is mansplaining the concept of fan service to _Jisoo_ of all people.

 

“It’s purposefully vague so that virtually anyone could fit those standards,” he says. “In the past, I’ve said things like… girls who smile with their teeth, girls with a lot of _aegyo_ , girls who love their work, girls with a pure kind of charm, things like that.”

 

He feels almost embarrassed to be rehashing his ideal type in front of her. Or anyone, really. For so long, he had been describing a certain type of girl, but the truth is, he’s no longer sure he even believes in types. People are individuals, after all.

 

Jisoo blinks at him. “So,” she says. “You were actually just describing Bomi _unni_ , but in as vague terms as possible?”

 

He sucks in a breath. “No,” he says, rubbing the skin beneath his ear. “Well, yeah, I was _back then_ … but _now_ … that wasn’t the point.”

 

She scoffs, amused. “What _was_ the point, then?” she asks.

 

“The point was,” Jinyoung says. “You shouldn’t lend those things too much weight. Ideal types don’t mean anything.”

 

“Oh,” she says, settling back into the sofa and nodding. “Thank you for the advice.”

 

Jinyoung thinks he might pop a vein. Why is it so difficult for him to just say what means?

 

“What I mean to say is,” he says carefully. “My ideal types isn’t the be-all, end-all of people that I’m attracted to, and you may meet someone who fits your type exactly and feel nothing for them. I _did_ like Bomi then… but now…”

 

Jisoo scoots forward on the sofa, waiting for him to finish, but he lets his voice trail off and doesn’t complete his thought. He doesn’t see the ghost of a smirk finding its way onto her face as she realizes what it is he’s trying to say.

 

“But now you like someone else?” Jisoo asks.

 

Jinyoung isn’t a self-centered person. Despite what others have told him and what his fans might say, he thinks his appearance is just slightly above average. His personality is more reserved and he typically requires a settling-in period of about three or four months before new acquaintances can really begin to see him at his most attractive, but few ever stick around that long. As a result, he hasn’t asked many girls out. He’s had crushes for sure and has been through quite a few “talking” stages, but no girlfriend.

 

So Bomi’s rejection still has a keen sting when he thinks about it. He isn’t quite ready to try confessing again anytime soon. He swallows and tries to switch the focus away from himself.

 

“Anyway, I’m talking too much,” he says, leaning back on the sofa. “You’ve probably been asked that question a million times already, anyway, ‘what is your ideal type?’”

 

He isn’t actually asking her that question, but it still gets Jisoo thinking. She shrugs.

 

“Well, back then, it used to be someone kind with a soft spot for me, especially,” she explains.

 

Jinyoung raises his brows. “Oh,” he says, rubbing his wrist. “Back then? What is it now?”

 

She doesn’t take her eyes off him: “You.”

 

Jinyoung is disarmed. He feels like floating to the ceiling and crashing to the ground all at the same time. His stomach is doing somersaults. When he looks at Jisoo with wide eyes, it feels like he is seeing her for the first time again, and she’s radiant. When he tries to say something, he can only stammer.

 

“Jisoo,” he manages to say, and her name sounds like the tenderest word he’s ever heard in any language. Then she gives him a shy smile, and he feels his heart crumble into a million tiny pieces.

 

But then the door opens, and in walks Doyoung and two stagehands who tell the pair that it is almost time to roll the cameras. Jisoo and Jinyoung grab their scripts and must shelve the moment for now.

 

This episode is the Pyeongchang Olympic special, so the stage has been decorated to promote the upcoming winter games, they are all wearing promotion t-shirts, and Jisoo is holding a plush toy of the games’ mascot. With Doyoung back in the equation, the trio falls back into their comfortable dynamic, and everything runs smoothly for the most part.

 

But Jinyoung hasn’t recovered from Jisoo’s confession back in the waiting room. How can she act so calm and normal after delivering such a bombshell? How can she stick to the script like always and act like she didn’t just change everything between them?

 

He is professional, as always, but he is hyperaware of her now. Every time her elbow accidentally bumps his or every time her knees skims his pant leg, it feels like fireworks are going inside of him. Every time she turns her gaze on him, he feels like he’s going to spontaneously combust. He doesn’t even mind the admiring gazes that the members of EXO turn on her. He doesn’t care when the other boys subtly try to flirt with her during interviews or when they pass her gifts and small flower bouquets.

 

The only thought he can register is: “This girl likes me. This girl likes _me_.”

 

A string of curses speed through his head as he tries to get a hold of himself. He’s never been anyone’s ideal type before, and he wasn’t expecting to be.

 

As the episode is ending, Jinyoung stops by the stairs and helps some of the female idols climb down from the stage. Doyoung is on the other side of the stairwell doing the same. Nothing out of the ordinary. But when Jinyoung reaches his hand out to guide Jisoo down from the stage as he usually does, their eyes meet again. Their hands touch, as they usually do. But this time, Jinyoung feels her give his knuckles a gentle, deliberate squeeze, and Jinyoung _swears_ that she has let her hand linger in his for one heartbeat longer than usual.

 

She’s never done that before.

 

As she walks toward the dressing room, she turns and gives him one more look. And that seals it for him. He knows what to do now, and he’s found the courage to do it. He’s going to ask her out. Today.

 

His heart is racing as he makes his way over to his waiting room to change back into his normal clothing and wipe the makeup off his face. He lets his manger remind him of his other schedules and signs a few pieces of paper for the newbies. He is radiating with anticipation, body and soul.

 

As soon as he can, he rushes out of his waiting room and looks for her.

 

He half jogging over to her waiting room when he notices the door to the costume department is slightly ajar, and something possesses to look in through the gap. There she is, sitting in a chair that is turned toward the mirror. Her head is turned down and she is reading something on her phone screen, but he can see the reflection of her face in the mirror.

 

The memory crashes into him. The last time he’d seen her this way was that time he saw her cry. Last time, he stood in the doorway, looking in through the gap and stopping himself from rushing in. Her sadness was a space that she let him see but not enter.

 

But then Jisoo looks up, and she catches his eyes in the mirror. Their eyes meet. She doesn’t say a word or move or do anything but sit there and let him see her.

 

She smiles. Jinyoung opens the door and enters.

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by the most recent episode of Inkigayo, in which Jinoyung got to MC with Apink's Bomi, the girl that he once said was his ideal type. I just couldn't help writing this when the idea came to me. No hate to Bomi, though, I love Apink and I love Blackpink <3 Nothing but love for these groups. This'll be a really short piece, probably no more than 2/3 parts.


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